Trinity
by Emerald Mami
Summary: Before the time of 21XX, there was an evil so great that it erased Wily's name from history! A new unlikely hero steps up! Chapters 5 and 6 up, it's kinda gory at the end... please r and r!
1. preface

"Whoo! I've done it!!!"

The cry echoed across the hallway of Dr. Light's laboratory. Megaman looked up, before he started running into the lab, trying to figure out what Dr. Light had "done." Roll was running, obviously for the same reasons. Rush joined the two, probably more for fun than any real reason. X soon caught up, running just to run with the group. 

Megaman and Roll skidded across the lab to where Light sat, doing a funny little dance with his arms. Megaman blinked. X laughed.

"What did you do, Dr. Light?" he asked. Light jumped up. "I've done the impossible!! I've made a program that lets robots age!!!"

Roll blinked. "But Robots weren't meant to age, Dr. Light," she informed him. Dr. Light smiled. "Ah, I know, but it'll help on a project I'm working on. You see, it's not a permanent aging. Maybe ten years or so, if not less. It allows them to grow. It's not a programming thing."

"But we're inorganic," Roll responded. "Is that why you're exited?"

Light nodded. "It's the most brillant thing!!" He started dancing again. Megaman quietly watched, thinking of what this would mean for him. Usally, Light would ask Megaman if he wanted to try something new... good or bad. This would allow him to grow taller, look older.... but it would have some downsides. For instance, he'd have to buy new clothes. A new uniform. 

"Hah. That's a pretty useless thing, Light."

The group turned to Protoman, who was standing in a corner. Megaman wondered how long he'd been watching. There was no way to tell.

Light flushed, but held his tongue. Protoman continued. "Who'd want to have a robot that grows? Gets taller? Looks older?"

Light smiled. "Actually, the robot doesn't grow much in size. It's more of a hidden aging factor. For exapmle, their hair grows out like a humans, but a human who has reached their destined size."

Protoman laughed. "Riiiiiight. Well, I promise I won't buy this." He gave a whistle, then teleported off, to who knows where. 

"He bugs me," X said, then scratched the top of Rush's head. "He's always so… so…."

"Dark," Roll concluded for him. 

Megaman had decided to take a walk, to think about the chip. It was pretty useless, as Protoman said- the robots were inorganic creatures. But the hair thing could have some advantages. He could cut his hair, or it could grow out. He could get taller and stop being considered a fourth grader, or a young kid. He'd be more believable when he told the security guard that he needed to stop Wily. 

A sudden scream made him turn around. A woman screamed as a man ran off with her child. Megaman instantly warped into his uniform and chased after the man. 

The man was quite fast for a human. He spun into empty warehouses, twisted into back alleyways, and melted into the shadows. Megaman could barely follow his lead, until the man stopped at the entrance to a wherehouse and pointed the gun at the child's head.

"I'll kill her! Stay away!" The child began to cry. Megaman took a step forward. 

The child cried harder. "Run away! Run Away! They want to kill you, Megaman!" Her eyes suddenly surged a blue. Her tears became forgotten, and Megaman stepped back from horror. A pair of eyes watched him from above, cold and unmoving. He didn't see them. He was staring at the man who pulled out a gun. It wasn't any gun he knew; it was twice the size, like a cliché laser gun. 

The child's eyes grew black, as if it had been no more than a robot. A cold chill went up his spine, and he turned to run to Dr. Light's lab. He could only pray they hadn't harmed them, either. 

The gun fired, and Megaman was aware of a sharp fuzziness slamming into his spine. He shut down automatically; he simply fell over. The man grinned and he pulled out another gun. He shot the child, who turned out to be nothing other than a robot. The figure from up above stood, and then dropped down. 

"He is all right?" the figure asked coldly. When the man nodded, she picked up Megaman and teleported off with him. The man grinned. Now he would get his reward…

"Roll!" Dr. Light shouted. "Where's Megaman?" The continuing of the beatings and firings of the force field continued. The lights were gone so the force field could hold. Roll shrugged, and Tango and Beat came in, with X following them.

X was one of Dr. Light's newest creations- he could think, feel, and make decisions for himself. As Megaman was still around, Dr. Light had no problem leaving X to grow up as any other child would, with a growing understanding and a growing conscious. As of right now, X acted a lot like a preschooler. 

Rush barked, and Roll was the first to spot the helmet Rush had hanging over his head. The room was deathly quiet.

"Is he gone?" X asked quietly. "Is Meggy gone?" His face turned a deeper sad than what preschoolers know; it was a deep sadness that echoes through the land, a sadness that never ends.

Rush gave a nod. The force field broke right at that instant, and X spun around, angry. His X-buster was ready and his eyes were angry. He started to yell in anger and dashed toward the door, with Tango and Rush following. 

"X, stop." Dr. Light's voice was cold. "Quickly, X. Follow me." X did so, but his head hung low. Roll, Tango, Rush, and Beat all stood their ground. Roll even transformed her arm cannon- something she had never done. A familiar whistle greeted them as Protoman stood beside them. They stared as the door barged through, awaiting their fate.


	2. chapter one

Chapter one: Intro into doom (hahaha) 

Lui ran over the walkway as if she were flying. Her heart gave a small jump as the gun fired next to her, but she stooped down low, gathered mud in her hands, and flung it at Yamagatchi's soldiers. A bullet came close to her ear- nicking the tip of it, but she charged on. Eventually, she found herself hiding in the hallway. As she looked around for an escape, her eyes caught a small panel in the back of Joe's butcher shop. She flung herself through it and waited.

The soldiers ran down the alley, but she had already closed the seal back up. In the darkness she would be hidden. The mud covered her clothes and stained and dried on her face, but she paid it no mind. The shaft seemed to go downhill. Her eyes peered outside. Boots walked around, with a voice behind them. It was sharp, curt, and cold. Lui gave a snarl as she heard it.

"That was the leader, you understand? She got away this time from you morons… but not from me." Somebody gave a groan as they died.

Trinity. Lui slowly and carefully slid her way back, releasing the bread package so it wouldn't make a sound. She did not breathe. Trinity was Yamagatchi's creation. She was beautiful- and very obedient. She was loyal, and she was never swayed. Joe had learned that. Trinity was one of the few robots left. Robots. That's a word that wasn't around anymore. 

It was rumored that Wily's old creations, like Forte, or Dr. Light's ancient ones, like Protoman, were left and around, but no one had proved the rumor.

Not Megaman. The world had seen Yamagatchi demand a new world order. They had seen Megaman burned- or at least, his outfit. They had seen Dr. Light killed and Wily slaughtered. Millions tried to resist, but only one organization was left, and it was run by kids. The times were like medieval times without Megaman; the king took everything for himself.

Trinity looked around. Lui knew her heat sensors were working on overtime, which is why she had worn no insulation, and was controlling every muscle in her body not to even dream of shivering. Her breathing became more controlled. Trinity gave a small growl. Finally, she spoke.

"She's gone. She left a long time ago, through that duct. Morons." She snapped someone's neck in half and he fell to the ground, staring in at Lui, dead. Lui tried hard not to flinch. Footsteps walked off, and Trinity spoke. "You will be mine, damn you."

_Yeah, eat my shit, bitch_¸ Lui thought, still not daring to pick up the bread. Trinity was still waiting around, and probably able to gas out Lui if she showed any reason to gas her out. Such was the way of life now. Trinity's comlink beeped. 

"What?" She demanded curtly. 

"Something's happened. Something's wrong. Where are you?"

"Butcher shop, number 211."

"Good. Go to Al's Butcher shop, I don't know where. The 'package' should be there."

"We destroyed that," her voice responded, somewhat inquizzical. "He's still alive, then?"

"Not unless awakened, no. Damn him. Damn him! Get back to base. Now." 

Trinity spread her wings and flew off, leaving Lui to grab the bread and slip back down the isle. Trinity spotted this and began to fire. Lui fell back….

And landed into an old butcher shop basement. Meat was hanging everywhere, rotting with its meat falling off the bones. Lui gagged before looking around. 

In front of her stood a door. She knocked on it, and then listened. Joe was working down the shop, not talking to anyone. She dared not knock again. She looked through the tiny crack in the floor. Two pairs of feet were there. She waited until one walked off, and Joe came over, looking at the small door. "This thing has been broken for centuries, I swear. There's no way to get it open."

"Yeah, well," she replied, relieved that he heard her, "It opens if you push. It has for years."

"No, if you do," he responded. "Wait. Let's both try pushing." As they did so, the door spun around like a lazy Suzan. Joe's grin turned sour.

"Uck," Joe responded, staring at the meat. "That's going to ruin my meat. Stand back. I'm going to freeze it all. He tossed in a small ice grenade and the rotting meat froze, nothing else. "Gotta love these."

Lui nodded. "Yamagatchi's bothered by someone he was supposed to kill years a-" she looked down the steps.

"Joe… is that what I think it is?"

He looked down. "A human? Almost impossible!" The two stared at the figure sleeping before them. He looked like almost lifeless but spare a few controlled deep breaths. Not to mention he was almost naked, save a pair of shorts. Lui clapped her hands together. "I've used this room for years…"

"It's a robot! I'll bet anything!" She tapped his head, and a dull metallic sound poinged across the room. She gave a huge smile. 

"Weren't they wiped out?" Joe asked, equally exited, but much more cautious. He took a step back as a rat crossed the path between Lui and the sleeping robot. Lui seemed to pay it no mind. She took a step closer, and sat on the dirty steps. 

Joe looked up as the costumer service rang. "You'll see the light come on if it's trouble," he told her. "Otherwise, use the exit." He walked up the stairs, leaving Lui with the sleeping robot. Lui quickly gave a small electric charge, which usually woke robots out of sleep. Of course, this was obviously more advanced than the robots she knew, but there was no harm in trying, right?

"Hey, kid," she said softly. "Kid." She shook his shoulder. 

His eyes slowly opened. "Wh…." He looked around. "Where am I?" he demanded, rather loudly. He attempted to get up, but couldn't. Lui nodded. "Shh. Listen. I'm Lui of the resistance. Who are you?"

The robot seemed to think, but sighed. "I ….can't remember. I just see a …silhouette of ….two figures and. …getting shut down, …meaningless programs flashing through my find… too fast for me now… but my name's Rock."

"Yamagatchi?"

Rock thought for a bit. "I don't know," he said finally. "What's going on?"

"Yamagatchi has taken over the world, Rock. Only the children remain untouched, unmoved. We're trying to resist, but Yamagatchi is destroying us. We're trying to stop him- but I'll let you see for yourself." She was quiet, then asked, finally, "Do you want my coat?" He nodded, looking at himself. He was wearing shorts, but nothing else, not even shoes. The raggedy, mud-stained jacket looked warm. 

She took it off and gave it to him. Her beau, matched the green plaid of the jacket, but under it there was a white t-shirt. Her jeans weren't any better, nor were her shoes, and her hair was cut almost like a guy's. Only three tiny bangs were on her face, the longer two on the side, no longer than her ear, and the other in the middle, no longer than her forehead. Her eyes were a greenish-blue, seeming to switch colors with every breath she took. Her biker's gloves were black and raggedy, but finished off her tough "gangster" look.

She looked at his head. "Nice locks there, kid," she told him and handed him a hair tie. He felt the length of the hair. His expression was puzzled. The length didn't seem right. Even so, the hair was dirty, grimy, but enough to put into a ponytail- save the huge lock that covered a quarter of his face. He opened his mouth to say something, but she silenced him with a finger. 

"Shh," she whispered, listening. Two voices echoed ahead. A light glowed blue, but then red suddenly. Lui acted quickly, and motioned for Rock to follow her through the air duct. The two crawled into it, Rock following Lui, and stopped to listen.

"See? I was just able to open this, Trinity. There was no robot. I swear." Joe's voice was calm. Trinity's footsteps came down. 

She looked around, and Rock's heart lurched as Trinity's voice struck a memory. But the memory soon faded, forgotten, and Rock picked up on the speech. Trinity had Joe in a death-like grip, angry. Rock's hand seemed burn as he saw the sight, sickened. He covered it up, trying not to make a sound. 

Lui saw it, and motioned for them to move quickly into the vent. Joe chocked for a reply. "Trinity…. There…. was…. no…one…. there…"

Trinity dropped him, and then struck. Joe's face was bleeding. He glared at her, and she teleported out. Rock's hand stopped burning, and he, too, crawled out of the space, leaving the meat behind.

"Welcome to the big city," Lui told him, walking around. "Quickly, now. You're liable to get lost in a crowd surge. It'll happen soon, so…." She walked quickly, and Rock could barely keep up. He was weakened, but still tried to walk. Lui stopped several times to wait for him. Her ears picked up something as she looked around, and then motioned for Rock to follow. The two made their way to the front of a huge crowd. A band was playing in the middle of the walkway, ignoring the heat from the sun. Rock's eyes grew big as the singer moved around; she moving so fast but never letting it affect her voice.

"All I want… is a little money, man. In this huge town, nothing's perfect, man." Lui danced as well. Rock looked above, seeing a bird in the air. 

Soon, the bird attacked the crowd. As it dove in for the kill, Rock realized that it wasn't a bird at all, but a pink crystallized and less pointy version of Trinity. It wasn't a hologram, but it wasn't a computer. 

Lui moved the singer out of the way of a laser, which hit the mic. "Hawk!" Someone cried, "Go haunt the skies!"

Hawk gave a cry, and suddenly two more Hawks joined it. The first Hawk shot the person in the crowd, leaving blood on the ground. Rock's head spun around at the sight and he grew dizzy. As the others shot another person each, he felt his hand burn and his heart starting to pound. The crowd scattered instantly, and so did the band and Lui. The three Hawks with Rock were all alone in the street.

Rock looked up at the first one. The hawk gave no sign of emotion. "No more concerts for you kid- ever."

Rock's eyes took in the sight of the gun, still hot and smoking from the pervious kill. His hand continued burning until the burn became visible.

"Hey, man, leave the freak alone," one said, taking a step back. "We don't have that authority."

"This kid's going down-" The first replied, and squeezed the trigger. 

A flash of gold and black swept down and Rock saw the Hawk helmetless, his neck broken and his mouth spilling blood. The heart still hadn't gotten the message that he was dead, and the flow didn't end. The savior's hand transformed into a triggerless gun and he fired from sheer will. The head of the Hawk was no longer attached. Rock's hand stopped burning, and Rock cradled it, scooting up to the black-and-gold flash slowly. The other two had their weapons drawn, but the savior fired with an even bigger blow. Their arms, along with half their bodies, were insintagrated from the impact and they were thrown back, dead.

Forte grinned as he comically raised his gun and blew the smoke off it. Taken by surprise, he looked down. "Cut that out," he said, staring at Rock hugging his boot. His Forte buster turned back into a hand as he attempted to shake the kid from his feet. Rock wouldn't give.

"Kid, you're okay," he told him. "Jesus Christ, Megaman," he said, finally getting him off, "You certainly haven't fought in a long time."

"I'm Rock," the kid said quietly, refusing the name.

"Right. And I'm Santa." Forte made a holly, jolly Santa laugh, which was quite disturbing. He glared at Rock, who had stood.

"Thanks," he said finally. "Who are you?"

Forte's jaw almost dropped. "My name is Forte, imbecile," he growled. "Can't you remember that? I'm your biggest rival, I blow things up, I destroyed Light's lab, I have the annoying little wolf…." Rock shook his head. "None of that gets to you?"

"Nope," Rock replied. "I'm sorry. I woke up a small time ago. I'll try to remember." His voice was genuinely sorry.

Forte rolled his eyes. "Don't bother. Damn. Even when it stares me in the face, I just can't get a good fight these days." He teleported out, leaving Rock alone.

Rock looked around. The band's drumset was still there, so he started with the cymbals and carried them into the alleyway he had seen Lui leave through. As he did, the drummer came out to get his stuff. He saluted Rock and continued on is way. Rock shrugged, but continued walking. As he entered the alleyway, Lui and the singer stared at him. 

"Nice, kid," Lui said. "Who's the guardian angel?" she took the cymbals and led him through a hologram of a brick ending to the alleyway. The singer took the cymbals and Rock went back for the snare and seat. Lui followed to help with the tom-toms (or whatever they're called). As the drum went back in pieces, Rock saw a pair of eyes watching him from above, a bluish color. He couldn't see anything else, so he let it slide. "No idea," he told her, setting the drum part in an apartment. 

She nodded. "We all aren't that lucky. What do you say, Charity?"

"Yamagatchi will die slowly by my hand," The singer replied, putting on an old coat and scarf, along with her baggy pants. "You, newbie. Have you been shown the base?"

"Base? The place with meat?"

"No, that's the butcher-shop. I hope Joe is all right." Lui looked in the direction. 

"Naw, that ain't no place for a base!" The drummer said. "See ya tomorrow, Charity," he said, shutting his door.

"Bye Cory," Charity replied. She looked Rock over. "You got parents?"

"I don't know," he replied.

Lui shook her head. "He doesn't have parents, Charity. He's also got amnesia. Give him a little slack."

"Then he turns out to be Yamagatchi's kid." She snarled. "And with him alone with the Hawks…."

"Forte," he responded, turning to Lui.

"Hmm?" She asked, blinking. Charity gave a small stare, then growled and walked off.

"His name's Forte. He's a robot. With a gun on his arm." Rock motioned to the area that showed his arm cannon. Lui nodded, then looked at him with narrowed eyes. "What did Forte want?" She asked.

"To fight, I think. I didn't know I could fight him. He's too powerful."

"Trust me, Yamagatchi's more. I've heard stories, and Forte has all too often gotten in fights with Trinity. One of them ends up a victor, and the one who is hidden shows it." Lui started walking. "Nice stroke of luck, though. Seems like a trait to have these days."

Rock looked at his arm quietly, giving a slight smile.


	3. chapter two

Chapter two: Hell's gateway 

"Home sweet home," Lui told Rock as the two walked across the empty parking lot to the DZ kids center. "Press your face against the window, then go to the back. It keeps the cops off our ass." She walked to the back instantly.

Rock nodded, and did as he was told. He stepped up to the glass. The sounds from inside died down as he stepped up, and looked longingly into the playground. His eyes saw nothing but empty, meaningless tubes and videogames along with plastic and trampoline fabric. His eyes would have watered, knowing children were dying from hunger, sickness, and slaughter instead of ending up here. His breath made fog against the glass. Finally, as if he could no longer stand it, he tore himself away from the picture. He huddled for a minute, and then began to walk to the back.

A swoosh made him stop. His eyes narrowed as Trinity flew down. Her uniform was white. Her helmet had three crystals poking out from it, along with wings at the side. Her shoulder pads mimicked the forehead crystals, and so did the sides of her belt. Her boots did the same as well, and so did her front arm pads. Her gloves were polished so well you thought they were snow. She held a tape measure. 

"Come here," she commanded coldly. Rock nodded, and took a step forward. He stared at her. She frowned, and then sighed. "What is it?"

"You're pretty," he responded, not taking another step. Obviously, she had not been expecting the comment, but held her emotions back. She moved her index finger to command him to take another step. He did so, and she instantly jumped on him.

Instead of finding himself in a battle situation, Trinity had his body numb and was measuring his size. "135 centimeters," she responded, recording it in a side panel on her arm. "Blue eyes. Long hair. Got it."

"What's up?" he asked. 

She turned, blinking. "Nothing. Go on your merry, happy, and miserable way." She waved him off.

Rock continued to watch her as she typed buttons on her keypad. She growled, but did not fire. Finally, she took off, probably to find more privacy. Rock sighed and continued walking toward the back door.

He knocked on the doorway. A cat jumped out behind him as the door swung open. Everyone stared in shock as he walked in. It was silent, until Charity made a comment from on top of the tall tube slide.

"Good choice, Lui. Not only does Forte guard him, but Trinity leaves him alone after measuring him for a coffin." She waved at him. "Welcome to our personal little hellhole, kid."

The door was closed behind him. A small computer came up. "Voice reconiztion, please," it commanded. 

"Um…. Hi."

"Nice to meet you," it beeped, and flew off. Lui came flying down the rollers with a small gun attached to a belt.

"Anyone have a spare shirt? No, wait, stupid question. Anyone have a rag?"

A boy raised up his oldest shirt. It was white, but looked brown from the dirt and had several holes. But it was fitted over Rock as soon as he had handed over the jacket.

Rock thanked the boy who responded with a shrug. Rock around the room. Mainly 7-12 year-olds were around, spare a few teenagers or babies. No adults seemed to be there, not even one of twenty. He blinked. No power, but flashlights hung on every corner. The tubes had different colored stripes painted, and in the plastic viewing bubbles there were sleeping bags or blankets. The roof was torn off, and laundry hung from the top to dry. Plants also stayed outside to gather rain, way, way up top. A five-year-old walked around up there, making sure everything was stable.

Charity spoke again. "He's a bad omen. I'd get rid of him, but he's seen too much already."

Lui spoke. "He's a good kid, Charity. Marie!" she called out. The kids yelled a "yay!" and got back to work, little conversations taking up the emptiness of silence. A small, pig-tailed girl somehow ended up in front of Lui. Lui smiled. "Take Rock around. Show him the ropes."

Marie nodded, then smiled. "I'm Marie," she said, starting to walk around the waiting area. Rock nodded, and was about to say his name, but she continued. "You had us worried there for a minute. Nobody's ever faced Trinity like that. She pointed to the windows. "Never go within six feet of those. They're protected, but you might show up." She continued and then pointed to the food area. "That's where we eat," she responded. "Usually, Joe shows up and cooks us something, but he can't tonight. So we're hungry." They continued walking until they reached the baby section. "The 'marines' live here," she responded. "They're the first ones to defend the base. See all those viewing bubbles? We use those in times of war, if they'd come up."

The two made their way to the big tubes. "And then the tubes are color-coded with stripes. The blue means the ball area, which is used for sleeping with elder kids. The green means the second floor tower, which leads in turn to the trampoline area- also where kids sleep. No stripe means it goes to the very top or third floor- where everyone sleeps. The only way out are either slides or the grappler. Finally, the red stripe means it leads to the meeting room- someplace only for Charity, Lui and Joe." She pointed to the eating table. "That's for education or fun time," she said, "and the Games arena is either another place to sleep or a place to hang." She smiled brightly. "You'll sleep on the third floor, Closed Viewing Bubble 28."

"So much weight," Rock muttered. "It doesn't fall, with, what, a thousand pounds or more?"

"No. The plastic is covering quadruple reinforced titanium. The cost was so great, the place couldn't afford the crap and was forced out of business." Marie smiled. "See ya around," she responded. 

"You too," Rock said, staring up once again in awe.

Rocks eyes were once again drawn to the moon. He remembered Trinity, and he remembered the voices in darkness. He remembered Lui's warning to wake up, and he remembered the burning of his arm seeing people die. He remembered the words of Forte. "I'm your biggest rival, I blow things up, I destroyed Light's lab, I have the annoying little wolf…." And he had even called Rock Megaman. Rock tried to focus on the name, but he got dizzy and his vision was blurry. He thought he had seen Forte before, but he didn't know where. 

He sighed and silently wished he had a video camera. He hugged his knees in the bubble, and flexed his arm. As he did so, a small panel opened. Like that. On his arm, there was a panel. A panel was on his arm. His eyes grew wide as he tried to back away from his own arm. 

_Go away_, he thought, shutting his eyes. _Go away_. He peeked one eye open. It was gone.

Had he just imagined it? He tried to mentally open the panel again. It did so. Freaking out, he mentally tried to close it again. It also did so. _What does this mean?_ He wondered silently. _Am I…not human?_

He stared at his other arm, his right arm- the one that had been burning before. He tried to concentrate on the burning feeling, but nothing happened. No panels opened, no arm gun appeared. He shivered as he fell asleep, to exhausted to do anymore.

"Lui, that kid is going to get you killed." Charity sat back, sighing. "Stupid thing is, you can't even see it." 

"You don't understand, Charity," Lui replied. "Well, there was a cover-up that wasn't done properly, judged by the conversation Trinity had with Yamagatchi as I lay huddled in the shaft. As Rock and I went through the escape vent, Joe spoke about 'No robot here'. I think it's a link. Rock's a robot that wasn't destroyed." 

Charity's eyes narrowed. "The information could have been planted, like him."

"He was too weak to even move at first, Charity. He's good in my book."

"Yes, but not in mine. Too much luck. Even Trinity left him alone." She waited for an excuse.

Lui gave her one. "He was being measured for height."

"And he didn't fit, did he? Why not? He's not who you think he is!" Charity banged her fist on the table. Marie walked in, caring drinks. She was amazingly short enough to do this, while Charity crawled out in disgust.

Lui sighed. "Charity……."

Charity lay on top of the entire building complex. The group had actually destroyed most of the roof, but it was there in case somebody fell off. But, as the children found out, if you were to fall, the ceiling would just crumble and crack with you. She sighed as she fiddled with her scarf.

"Once upon a time," she said to herself, "there was a singer who fell in love. Then Yamagatchi came to power and the love of her life was called to serve him. The love died. The end." She gave a rueful smile. "I was never good at stories."

Rock was awakened the next morning from Marie sitting in the bubble. She was watching him with rounded eyes. He opened his, and stretched. "What's up?"

"You feel sick?" she asked. "There's a virus going around. Kids are puking all over."

"I'm not cleaning up," he muttered, "but I feel fine enough." He shrugged to Marie.

Marie grinned. "Great. You can help us weld." She took off through the tunnels at amazing speed. Rock tried to follow, but his skill was only so limited. He constantly was slipping and falling down; often she was waiting for him. They crossed bridges and went through all sorts of tubes- even ones someone had been sick in. 

As the two reached a viewing glass, a ten-year old stopped them. "Order of business?" he asked, bored. 

"Welding. Both of us." She pointed to Rock, who was looking outside the broken viewing glass. The ten-year-old nodded and Marie pulled Rock through.

The balance was hard to find. The morning dew made the tubes slippery, and Rock's huge feet didn't help him any. Marie even slipped a few times, but swung around on the poles gracefully and got back to where she was. As Rock crawled upwards to where the crew was, he asked Marie a question.

"Has anyone ever fallen?" he asked, looking down twenty feet below.

"Sure," Marie responded. "And they died, too. But we have enough crap melded together to break someone's fall- if they're smart enough. And luckily, when the Hawks fly over, the building, even though the roof is open, don't see it. They only see a holographic image produced by Terne- that's the computer that asked for your voice." The two were at the crew sight now. "Hey guys!" Marie called. "You're gonna slip carrying that!"

A member nodded, and the tube was placed down. Rock saw the tube was part of a slide- but handholds had been burned in it, and viewing bubbles were up, but not connected. He shakily stood up and looked around for something to grab. There was nothing.

"Hey, new kid," someone told him. "Do you weld, or do you hold?"

"He holds," Marie responded. "Come on. We've got to get this finished before sundown if the teens want a place to sleep." Before the welder could say anything, she added, "_And_ they want a place to sleep, Brandon."

Brandon shrugged. "Start holding kid," he said, putting on his goggles. Marie disappeared to do her job. Rock shrugged and picked up the tube the kids had been struggling with. It wasn't too big, but it was bulky. As he struggled to find a good foothold, the two other kids helped balance the tube out. Soon, the tube was fit in place, but Rock still stood beneath it, lest it fall. The two holders held a support beam in place, about a meter tall. As the welder sealed the last of the metal onto the plastic, Rock's eyes fizzed themselves upon the fire. He somehow saw the energy efficiency, and saw the strength of the support beam.

"It's not going to work well. You need to dig it in deeper," he said, releasing the tube and trying to force the beam into the titanium. The titanium gave a bit, and the welder's eyes got big. The heat from the effort caused the beam to hold up, and the tube was still in tact. As Rock let go, the three boys applauded him. 

"Nice job," Brandon told him. "You're strong, kid." Rock shrugged and began to lift another tube.

"Wait!" Brandon cried. Rock spun around, losing his footing. He waved his arms frantically to get on balance, and the welder held a pole in front of Rock's face. Rock held on to it, and the three struggled to pull him up. Rock helped, and soon, the four of them were working harder than ever.

As the day passed on, the group's morale became much higher. Terry, one of the lifters, had summed all their happiness into a phrase. "When the day started out, I wouldn't have thought we'd get this finished. But now, I think we'll get even more done!" He repeated this several times, but finally realized his own stupidity and shut up. Larry, the other kid, was quiet but smiled at Rock a bunch of times. 

When the group was all done, Brandon smiled. "Let's take a breather," he told them. The group spread out on the newly welded playtubes. Rock had the biggest smile of all. In the background, puking could be heard.

"Ah, the poor souls never seeing this miracle," Terry said, sighing. "They were all sick, but us. We'd had it several days before. And our team is the yellow team. Welcome aboard, Rock. Unless you get sick."

"Just us, by ourselves," Larry said, also sighing. Rock joined in the sighing fest and, well, sighed.

Brandon's eyes were upward in thought. "Hey, Rock, how'd you get so strong? No kid can even do that."

"I don't know," Rock told them. He would have shared what he thought, that he thought that he was a robot, but he refrained. "Always been that way," he told them truthfully. 

"Here comes Marie," Brandon said, sighing. The other three sighed. Marie walked up, amazed.

"Jeez! What have you guys done? It's finished! So fast!"

"New kid," the three responded. Rock shrugged. "I helped out," he answered modestly.

"I'll say." Marie placed her hands on her hips. "Well, you guys certainly earned a break. Seeing as you've taken it, you're all done for the day. Everyone's dry urping now, so cleanup crew isn't up to their heads in varmit."

Rock's mind had another flashback. 

A blond female was standing there, holding a sick old man who was hunched over. Rock was watching quietly, worried. This man meant something to him. A robotic red dog gave a whine while a bird was perched on Rock's shoulder.

"Chaos told me ice and saltine crackers should do it," the blond said. Rock knew she was a robot, but didn't know how he knew. 

The memory faded and Rock was left speechless. Marie, Brandon, Terry, and Larry were staring at him. Marie spoke. "You okay? You just zoned out really bad as a Hawk flew by."

Rock blinked. "Did I? I'm sorry. I just had a flashback." He smiled. "I've had amnesia for as long as I can remember. But it told me what do about your urping problem. Ice and crackers usually does it."

Marie blinked. "Thanks!" she said, and raced down the tubes, now dry from the mid-day sun. Rock shrugged and turned, but something made his head snap around. Marie had disappeared, but Brandon was yelling out her name. She had fallen.

"Marie!" Rock cried, diving off the tubes to save her. How he attempted to save her in mid air was anyone's guess, but he caught up to her, the tubes passing them by. He held her in one arm as the other grabbed on to a vertically placed support beam. The two were suspended in the air. 

"I've got her!" Rock shouted. "We're three levels below!" he looked at Marie, who had passed out. "She's fainted!"

Brandon's voice found them. "You've got five levels left, kid. Try to lower yourself down on a tube. We'll take the slide to greet you."

Rock nodded, and looked around. Besides dropping several feet, there had to have been another option. The beam was giving, and Rock didn't want to bend it. There was a net a few levels below, blocking the ballpen. But it was far to the west, and Rock didn't think he could make it.

As the beam gave a shudder, he realized he had no other choice. No one was in the ball pen, and he gave a leap, hugging Marie and going back-first into the ball pen to protect her. 

There were no witnesses- if there had, many would have seen a miracle. Rock didn't make it to the ball pen. As he hit the ground hard, his body gave off a blue aura and he slid into the pen. 

He opened his eyes to make sure Marie was alright. When she was, he checked himself over. The sliding had quit, but he didn't want to try again. His heart was beating furiously, and his mind was racing. He sat there in shock as Brandon and Lui made their way through the multi-colored balls. As Brandon reached Marie, he gave a sigh of realif. "She's alive and okay."

"She fainted in my arms," Rock said quietly. "We were suspended, really high… and the beam was giving. We'll have to redo the beam." Rock was quivering. Lui walked over to him. "What's wrong, Rock?"

"I slid," he said, almost crying. "I slid."

Lui gave him a hug. "It's okay, Rock. You're okay now." He nodded but did not move. 

As Brandon and Lui pulled Marie's body in a sitting position, Brandon asked what that was all about.

"I'm not sure," Lui said quietly. "And I wish I was."


	4. chapter three

_Chapter three: On the streets_

Charity did not talk to Rock after that. Some said she was mad, others said she was angry with herself. Whatever the reason, she took her time to avoid Rock at all costs.

Marie was unchanged. She was grateful, but she had not seen Rock slide. She had fainted once she had fallen. Apparently, her best friend had done the same, and the fear was too great for her mind to handle.

Rock was quiet, reading a copy of Romeo and Juliet in his spare time. He understood the story, and he had no idea why he even bothered to read it. He had been reading in his bubble until Marie came to get him.

"Auntie Chaos is here! She wants to see everyone!" She dragged Rock out of the bubble and down the slide, where a cloaked figure greeted everyone. The figure was about twenties, tall, and had a rich alto voice when she spoke.

"Ah, there's Marie." Chaos took off her hood to greet her. Rock blinked as he felt another memory come on. But this time, it simply stayed beneath the surface of his mind, and all she did was look familiar.

She spoke to him. "I am quite glad you saved our little Marie. Without her, this base is a load of shit." As she spoke the "naughty" word, the younger kids gasped. Lui and Charity grinned at each other, and Chaos smiled at the teenagers.

"Come now, Lucas," she said to the brown-haired boy, "What has happened here that I should know of?"

"We've been sick, Chaos. Other than that, we've got newbie who's a white cat around her. Good luck for everyone." He pointed to Rock. "And you know quite well my name's Cain."

"Yes, Cain. How could I forget?"

"You didn't," he said, folding his arms. "And neither did I."

"Please, auntie Chaos?" a five-year-old squeaked. "Bring back the magic?" The five-year-old looked pleadingly.

Rock looked up and saw that a neon light was beginning to glow, and a inflatable person was beginning to inflate. He smiled as the videogames, though quiet, turned on. 

All at once, the arcade sprung to life and cookies appeared at the eating tables, along with a cake, pizza, and coloring books with crayons. Confetti burst from who-knows-where and the younger kids shrieked with joy as they ran off. The teens all ran for the arcade, and the older kids went for the bathrooms. Only Lui, Charity, and Rock were left with Chaos as she handed them some money.

"Work your ass of these days. That's all Yamagatchi wants." She sighed.

"Chaos, when the hell have you worked for something? You use your power or whatever," Lui said, and they all laughed.

"You'd be surprised," Chaos replied. "Unlike Spider-man, who thinks of Power is equal to great responsibility, I think power should only be used for extremities. Like in today's world, for instance." She winked. Rock laughed, which meant Chaos turned on him. "Hello. Enjoying today's society, Rock?"

"You know my name?" he asked, surprised.

"This is Chaos. She seems to know everything." Lui said sarcastically. "Even if no one saw, she knows. Well, I'm off to eat! Coming, Charity?"

Charity nodded and the two ran off. Rock's stomach plummeted to the ground. "You know everything?" he asked quietly. When Chaos nodded, he came back with, "That's not fair! You know who I am, when I don't!"

"True. But I have my unfairness in life, young one," she told him. "And I am not to reveal things unless you know yourself." She handed him an ice-cream cone. 

"No thanks. I don't eat."

"And how do you absorb energy?" she asked, waving a hand. The ice-cream cone was gone, but Rock's panel had opened. Amazed, he stepped back from Chaos, who shook her head.

"I'll teach you how to read that. Again." She pointed to the panel with several long lines. "This is an energy meter. Once this thing is full, it blinks blue. If it's empty, it blinks red. You shouldn't have to worry about it. You'll find that sleep does most of the job, but if you fall from huge heights, or take a hit from an enemy, like Trinity, it'll fall more rapidly. You never want this to hit zero, understand?" 

Rock nodded, amazed at the little button. "You know so much…"

"That ain't half of it, Rock," she replied. "You'll probably never see me again, so when you remember…" she gave him a hug. "I'll miss you forever, boy," she said, sniffing. "And so will the world." Then, she vanished, but her toys and food did not. Rock hugged the air she had been in.

"I guess I'll miss you too, Chaos…"

The next morning, Charity stopped by the bubble. She glared at him several times, each as if commanding to wake him up. When he did, he snapped to attention. "Yes m'am?"

"Your yellow team is working the streets today. You're with me, and you had better do a damn good job and avoid the Hawks."

Rock nodded as she crawled off. 

When he reached downstairs, the yellow team was waiting for him. "Upgrade, man," Terry told him. "This is so cool. We get to steal bread and crap."

"Literally? I pray not." Brandon stood on the side, very cool and calm. The nine-year-old twins were jumpy. Rock just gave a smile.

"Listen. Trinity is no one to mess with. I doubt she'll come after you, but after the incident with Rock, you'll never know. The Hawks are all men. Kick 'em where it counts and move on. With Trinity, either run away as fast as you can, or hide and don't make a sound. She's got infrared vision, night vision, super-enhanced hearing, and all that good crap. Plus, they don't believe guilty until proven innocent out here. They think 'shoot on sight'."

The group nodded as Charity opened the door and led them through the alleyways, the same ones Rock had gone through earlier. Larry was nervous, and his palms were sweaty. Brandon looked confident of himself, while Terry was just exited. Rock was a calm, steady, but his morals were conflicting with that. 

"One more thing, before I tell you your mission. They'll do anything to find this place. If you let them, they will come here and rip your friends apart. The last shred of hope for the entire world will be cut, and you will die mercilessly. So it was for my husband. So it will be for you. Don't. Get. Caught." The group nodded. "Steal as much bread as you can. Bring it back here. Don't wait for others. Don't save anyone. You are on your own."

The group nodded and Charity pushed Brandon out as a crowd moved by. The crowd couldn't see them, but they could see the crowd. Brandon moved with the crowd, and it died down. He was gone. 

"Good. He's worked the streets before. He knows the rules. Now, for you, never steal within eighty feet of the base, you hear? Never draw fire here. Do not draw attention to yourself, and if caught, never, _ever_ use the alleyways. Never."

The twins nodded and were pushed out into the next wave. Charity glared at Rock, who waited. "What's wrong? Afraid?"

"Yes," Rock answered. "Something bad's out there. It's waiting. I know it."

"Forte?" Charity asked looking around. 

"No, not Forte. But not Trinity, either." Rock sighed. "I'm sorry, I guess I sound really, really stupid now…."

"No hunch is stupid," Charity replied. "See that washing place? The one with the blond chick with the hair? She looks like a spy. She's so inconspicuous. So perfect."

"Or it's the Hawk above her," he replied.

"No. It's in her gaze, in her eyes. She's waiting. She's seen the others. We'll have to take another route." The woman started coming over. "Damn! She's seen us!" Charity moved back, her scarf flailing in the wind.

"Actually," the woman said, staring blankly at the two, "I've heard you. Please stop referring to me as a 'she'. It kind of pisses me off." 

"So you're a gay guy?" Charity responded. The man's fists curled, but he did nothing. "You have a nice looking-glass," he responded. "One can leave, but not enter. I've seen it used so many times." He smiled.

"What do you want?" Rock asked. The man's face was surprised, but it grew into a happiness. An evil kind of happiness.

"At the moment, I would be content in giving you a warning, Rock. Besides Forte after your rear, Trinity is looking for Megaman. You should be cautious today. And your friends." He gave a wave. "Good luck, and don't follow me around."

Rock's mouth was open, but he found enough curiosity to make them form words. "Who are you?" he asked.

"My name…. I have none." The stranger was blunt.

"Can I call you Zero, then? Zero name?" Rock asked curiously.

"Why not? A number is as good as any, right?" the stranger shrugged and walked off, thinking about it.

Charity waited for a few minutes. Then, she spoke. "Get your bread. Three loaves. Then leave. Never go out again today, understand? Take the alleyways."

Rock nodded his reply, and was pushed into the mixing crowd. The crowd enclosed on him, and he looked around for Charity. All he could see was a alleyway, with a dumpster and a can about three feet from it. He looked around at all the people, but they did not try to help. They looked downwards or upwards. They tried to ignore Rock, as he slid in and out of empty spaces, looking for a grocery store, several decameters away. When he found one, he entered the store.

It was very quiet, and no one was there. He walked up and down the isles, looking for bread. When he found none, he looked out the window for any sign of inspiration.

He found the reason no one was in the store. Rock's heart gave a leap as he saw Terry, cornered by Trinity. Her arm was into a gun much like Forte's; Rock new there was no saving Terry. As Terry's voice didn't come out for a scream, Trinity smiled as she fired a crystal at his right arm. The bread he had been stealing fell onto the ground. Rock's hand began to burn again. He tried to look away from the glass, but his eyes made him look that way. His mouth could make no sound as Terry was beaten on again and again.

Rock's hand burned and his eyes were big and his mind was blank and suddenly he was flying….

The glass shattered all around him and he slid to where Terry was. He got up to face Trinity, stepping between her and Terry. Trinity was almost giddy, and fired a blast at his shoulder. 

Rock wasn't sure of what possessed him to fight. He wasn't sure why he needed to steal bread, nor was he sure of protecting a kid who he had been commanded not to protect if put in this situation. Soon, though, as the crystal came nearer, everything went slow.

His hand burned, and Rock knew why. Instead of fighting it, he let the change take place. His hand grew small and slid into his arm, and a cannon formed instead. The change wasn't as quick- the buster, he knew, had not been used for a long, long time, and wasn't as sure of itself- but Rock didn't care. He leveled the cannon at the spike and fired, shattering the spike.

Trinity's eyes grew wide as shabby little Rock fired again. He had no shoes, he had the minimum of clothes (t-shirt and shorts) and his appearance was dirty and grimy. But in his eyes he held determinacy, and a dignity, a self of purpose. As Trinity saw this, she threw up a shield instead of another attack. She stared at the kid for a few seconds, then spoke.

"Your ass is so mine, Megaman. No one breaks my attacks." Rock blinked, but held back from firing, even though he wanted to. Trinity grew a bluish color. Rock unleashed his last attack, then frantically scooped up Terry and ran with Terry in his arms. As Trinity pointed her hand at Rock, he was aware of a blue beam engulfing him. He waited for the end as he liquefied and was carried away.


	5. chapter four

_Chapter four: home sweet home_

Terry's eyes opened to an old, abandoned laboratory. He blinked, sat up, and looked around. Rock was sprawled out a few meters away from him. Some green cat was on Rock's chest, purring. Another green cat, but more striped-looking, also was there, and mewed at Terry. He guessed she was a robot, and the confirm was correct as a tiny TV-screen flipped up out of her head and words flashed by. _Hello_.

"Um…hi." Terry pointed to Rock. "Is Rock going to be okay?"

_He's lost a lot of energy, but Forte and Zero are looking for energy. They'll find him and give him some._

"What if they don't give it to him?" Terry asked, huddling up. The cat shook her head and mewed. She sat next to Terry, and the TV screen disappeared.

"Hey…Tango," Rock said quietly, then fell back asleep. Tango gave a happy yell, then turned into a spiky ball and bounced around the room. Before he could hit anything, the female cat with the TV screen produced a green force field for Tango to bounce around in.

"How'd we get here?" Terry asked the cat.

"Good question, kid." Terry looked around for the voice. Forte appeared from behind the cover of darkness. "No one seems to know the coordinates of this lab. Judging from his position, he didn't either."

Terry scooted back. Forte looked at him, but did nothing else. He tossed an energy to Rock, who absorbed the energy as soon as it touched him. Rock was still sleeping, but Forte shrugged. A new robot, which Terry supposed was Zero stood behind the doorway.

"He's not snapping to attention, Zero," Forte said sighing. "You'd be good to realize that."

"He's playing possum," Zero argued.

"He's not that smart. He doesn't even know who he is, of all things." Forte sighed and sat down, sighing. To Terry, he asked, "So, kid, read any good books lately?"

"Romeo and Juliet," Terry responded. "Rock brings them to work. He'll read them to us. I really like the part when Juliet kisses a dead man."

"Romeo," Forte responded. "Yeah. That's nice." He shuddered. "Kissing a dead man…. that's new…"

Rock's eyes opened. "Where'd the cat go?" he asked, trying to sit up.

"Hah! Told you so!" Forte yelled. "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha and HA!" Zero sulkily entered the room, and sat next to the computer, across from Terry. Terry hugged the cat for comfort. Zero had long blond hair, but at this moment, with anger streaked across his face, looked like the grim reaper. Taken by surprise, the cat let Tango go and Tango bounced back to Rock and purred.

"T…Tango," he said, quietly. "I… remember you…."

"Not much to remember," the cat uttered. Terry was taken by surprise. "You can talk!"

"Don't count on her doing it much, though," Zero responded darkly. "Especially when you're about to get creamed by your older brother." Forte gave a grin. Rock laughed, and tried to sit up. 

"Where are we?" Rock asked. "You guys don't belong here."

"You remember _why_ we don't belong here?" Forte asked. Terry picked up the cat that talked and began playing, trying to get her to walk on two legs.

"No. Just that you don't belong here." Rock's eyes were glazed over, as if in deep thought.

"Let's try something else," Forte replied. "Do _you_ belong here?" 

Rock began to think. "I think so," he replied slowly.

"Do you live here?" Zero added, staring at Terry. Terry stopped messing with the cat and the cat jumped down and sat in Zero's lap.

"I think so." Rock's eyes lit up. "I do! I do live here! And there's the blond girl, and the old man, and the dog…and Tango! Tango lives with me!"

"Old man?" Forte lipped over to Zero. Zero shrugged, but Rock was thinking more.

"And the bird! And… and… the….the….Auto! Auto lives here, too! And….and…." he stopped speaking. 

"They're not here," he said, finally. 

"What are their names, Rock?" Terry asked, listening.

"I…I can't remember that." Rock's voice grew cold. "But they belong here. They're gone. What happened, Forte?" 

Forte was colder than usual. "Yamagatchi. You'll have to ask your brother about the final battle. He survived, but only because Roll teleported him off. Same thing happened to us."

"You're brothers?" Rock asked, surprised. Forte nodded. Zero huffed in annoyance. Rock looked at Zero. "And Roll…is my…sister…"

"You remember Roll?" Zero asked. "That's pretty good. Most of the time it takes weeks to remember that much." 

Terry looked up at the burnt roof. A sickening feeling was in his stomach. "Trinity's up there," he said quietly. 

Everyone looked up. The roof was almost see-through, and her silhouette was pretty recognizable. She blasted her way in, angry. 

"There goes my surprise attack!" She yelled, and she turned a yellow. 

"Run!" Forte commanded suddenly, flinging Terry out of the room. Terry hit a door, crashed through, and found himself in a hallway. He stood up, looking back, but he quickly ran out of the house.

Forte growled and the cats joined him. Rock's eyes grew wide as she pointed one finger at him. Zero fired his buster at her, and the attack was slowed but by some.

Rock's panel opened to show him how much energy he had. Chaos's words rang through his head, and he quickly scrambled out of the way. His buster transformed, and Forte also fired.

Trinity's face was scrunched up in anger. "You fools!" she cried, and glowed a green. Forte knew what this was, and tackled her to the ground before she could finish the technique. Zero and Rock stopped firing, for fear that they might his Forte. 

As Trinity recovered, Forte was flung into a wall. The cat cushioned the crash with a soft force field and Tango bounced across the room, hitting Trinity. 

Trinity's crystals began to glow in several different colors as Zero, Forte, Tango, and Rock continued hitting her. She unleashed all of her energy, and Rock was flung into a wall. His energy meter dropped several units, and it was glowing a red. It wasn't empty, but he was exhausted.

"Stop…." Rock said, struggling to stand.

Trinity stared at him before firing. 

Tango saw the spike. He saw Computo Cat down, taken by surprise, her units burned. He saw Forte just recovering, along with Zero. Only he would be able to stop the blow. Once again, he would be there for Megaman.

Tango jumped into the spike's path. Rock's face showed absolute horror as the spike hit Tango's little body. Blood was spattered all over, and Tango was soon on the ground, mewing pitifully.

Computo woke up. Seeing Tango like that, she put up a force field to try and stop the bleeding- but her energy was low. She was working her heart out. Forte charged up for a super shot, while Zero did the same. Rock fell to the ground, staring at Tango.

Trinity gave a grin. "I will be back," she told him, and teleported off. Forte and Zero stopped charging, and their busters fell to their sides. Computo's energy gave out, and Tango continued to bleed. Computo fell over, exhausted, and Rock scooped up Tango into his arms. He gave a sob as Tango licked his nose, and a wail as Tango's eyes closed. Rock was like that for a long time.

"Lui." Lui looked up to see Charity sitting, waiting for her. "Trinity's gotten out of hand. Yamagatchi's world is in confusion. Terry's come back, saying Rock's a robot. With their energies for Rock, Lui…."

Lui thought it over, then sighed. "Right. Where's Joe?" 

"Taken," Charity answered. 

"Ok," Lui responded. "Break the news in the morning. The kids need their sleep." Charity nodded and then left. Lui pulled out a picture, taken by her. Her mother stood in the garden, watering. 

"Soon, mother. Soon."

"How long has he been like that?" Zero asked, coming home. Computo shrugged, then went back to sleep. He sighed, then looked at Rock, who was rocking back and forth. 

Forte came in. "He'll remember soon. I pray his first instinct won't be shoot Forte." He sighed, then sat in an old cushy chair. "Any word from Protoman?"

"Can't find him. He's not in the same place twice. He's not out and about like he used to be, and he knows we're living here." Zero turned to Forte. "Speaking of which, don't you think we should move?"

"Naw. That bitch has heart. I saw it as she watched Megaman cry for Tango. She grinned to act big and crap, but she could have finished him off. She's holding back."

"Holding back?" Zero sighed. "Great. That's just dandy."

"You kill anyone today?" Forte asked. 

"Two people. They called me gay again." Zero looked at his hand stained with blood. "Too bad blood doesn't stay red forever."

"Too bad," Forte agreed sarcastically. "When do you think you'll stop?"

"When I've completed my programming to destroy Megaman and X." Zero shrugged. "It's not right to kill Megaman like this, so weak and pathetic. Besides, Wily also told me that if he were to die, to avenge his death first. He knew Yamagatchi was a bastard."

"Nice," Forte said, nodding. "You think you'll ever get free will?"

"One day," Zero responded, shrugging. "Why? Do you have it?" 

Forte nodded. "It comes when your original purpose is completed, usually. Like for me, I was to fight Megaman. Did. After that, I continued for the reason that he creamed my ass."

"Gospel?"

"Wolf from the start. Purpose was to be my pet. Other than that… no." Forte looked at Rock once again. "It would be scary if that turned out to be Protoman, know what I'm saying?"

"Yup." Zero sighed, staring at Rock. "Where's X?"

"Light hid him, and trust me, when Light hides something, it's hidden until it's found, probably by some smart-assed teenager in today's world as a geeky, drunken old man in thirty years." Forte sighed, looking at the dead computer. "Life is a bitch. Then you die. You'll do good to learn that, kid."

"Thanks…" 

Rock walked into the room they were in. "I'm going to find Protoman," he said monotonely. "And I don't care if you're coming along. I'm going to find this Yamagatchi and……bring him to justice, once and for all."


	6. Chapter five

_Chapter five: Enter the end_

Protoman shook his head as he watched the army of children march out to attack Yamagatchi's fortress. The children were quiet and silent- he guessed maybe Lui and Charity would make it to Trinity. 

He'd been watching them for some time. Probably since Chaos tipped off that Megaman was there. Protoman looked and looked, but he still hadn't found Megaman. He sighed and sat back to watch the group slip into three different sets. He looked up at Yamagatchi's castle, the tower that everyone could see. It was a good fifty Kilometers away. The kids would be walking for hours upon hours except for the streets and the cars. The first wave left, and the second waited, cramming up the alleys. Marie was in charge of the first wave, and she rode on the motorcycle fearlessly as she threw her life away.

Protoman couldn't believe that Megaman was alive. Chaos mentioned something along the lines of 'really lucky that Blue's alive'. Blue was the name she called Megaman. She had been looking at the sky, but her words echoed through his head. 

"Lui!" Protoman's head spun around, his heart leaping at the sound of the voice.

Lui looked up to Rock, running with Computo Cat, Zero, and Forte behind him. He ran up to her, his feet sliding as he stopped. He looked at her, with everyone around.

"Lui, what's going on?" Rock asked. "It's not war yet, is it?"

Lui messed with a gun. "Rock. Listen closely." She spoke coldly. "I appreciate the concern, but Larry's confirmed the suspicion. You did a good job, kid, keeping up morale. It was hard, and it you saved Marie's life. But now, Joe is gone. The fighting spirit is gone- reduced to kids now. Yamagatchi has been gathering strength- Chaos told us by handing us money. When she has money to give, that's a sign. Yamagatchi is going to kill everyone on the planet. Only I can stop him. Not you, not Forte, not Zero. Me."

"That's an ego, woman," Forte said, raising an eyebrow.

Lui's face was hidden underneath a shadow. "You'd be surprised, Forte." Suddenly, there was a huge blast. To everyone, she gave a cry. "It has begun! Let us do our families proud!" The group ran out onto the streets, knives, guns, and wooden poles upraised. Person after person passed before Rock's eyes. Brandon. Larry. Terry. He even saw Charity, in her battle dress- not the coat and pants, but almost a swimsuit with huge boots, along with spades. He watched as the alley was suddenly empty. He looked to Zero, who was looking up.

"Come down or I'll shoot," Zero told the figure. Protoman jumped down. As he did so, Rock's memory all came back.

The start of Wily. The reprogramming of the robots. Roll's creation. Rush's. Tango's, and SunGod's downfall. Forte destroying the lab. Protoman's whistle. Auto's creation. Duo. 

Megaman's head swirled around. He grasped it, trying to heal the pain with his hands. He was on the ground soon, his eyes showing binary everywhere. 

"Trinity…" he said, his voice cracking. "Why…." Suddenly, a blue light erupted from Megaman's body. He was engulfed in flame, his clothes burned away. The fire was too bright to look at, but Protoman still stood facing his brother. Megaman's voice spoke, and his eyes were far away. "What happened, Protoman? What did they do?"

Protoman's eyes held tears, something he had acquired on his trip around the universe. "It…It was horrible, Megaman. Roll had even transformed her arm cannon. Light had hidden X in the emergency capsule. He won't awaken for thirty years or so. After that, Yamagatchi broke in. He had Trinity, and she was wise. Her own abilities, plus his, were amazing. He was able to fire electrical blasts from a gun. They shut down anything. Trinity took on myself, Tango, and Auto, while Roll, Beat, and Rush took on Yamagatchi. There was no contest. Yamagatchi won with nothing to spare. Roll, in a last attempt, hit my teleported and Tango hit me right then. I was teleported away. I tried to teleport back, but the signal was jammed. When I did make it back…. My God…." He fell to his knees, tears streaking down his face, his voice cracking, his shoulders sobbing. "Light… hadn't had a quick death. He was…. torn apart…. piece by piece… The others were shown the same light." He went numb, sobbing. 

Megaman's voice appeared, the light even more intense. "To you?" he asked Forte and Zero. 

Zero began. "I was created to rival your brother, X," he said. "My sole mission in life is to destroy you. But as I've seen, missions can be altered. Wily wasn't shown any mercy. Forte and I were out training in the woods when Quick Man ran up to us. He said Wily was in trouble. Forte and I ran to help, but it was too late. A beam crashed down into the Earth. Quickman knocked us down, sacrificing himself for us." Zero turned to Forte to continue.

Forte did so. "It was hard. Hell, I even took off my helmet in respect. Wily wasn't robotic, so Trinity came down and took him down. She didn't go slow, either. She wrote the words 'Justice' in his blood. Wily was still alive when Zero found him."

The light went from blue to white, then almost invisible, except to the robots eyes, was still blinding from energy. Megaman's voice let out a terrible yell, then as it finished, he stood, his eyes narrowed.

His uniform was back, and his megabuster was readied. Protoman looked up, and shook his head. "Megaman… we can't do anything."

"Wanna bet? With those kids, we can make it all the way to Yamagatchi." Megaman started running off, his eyes almost on fire.

Protoman looked up. His fingers traveled to his scarf, the one Light had made for him. He gave a nod, and then followed.

Computo went next, and hopped onto Protoman's shoulder for a ride. 

Forte looked at Zero, who shook his head. But Zero felt surprise as Forte ran off, trying to catch his rival. Sighing, Zero followed as well, knowing Wily would want it that way.

Trinity waited by Yamagatchi's desk. Her uniform was on, all but the helmet. Silky, thick, brown hair spilled from her head to midback. Her hairpins were on her armguard, magnetically sticking on. 

Yamagatchi was an older man, about sixty, but with a head full of white hair, shaven off on all but the very top. Yamagatchi's eyes narrowed as Hawk #3704 entered the room. "Sir. The children are attacking."

"Yes, how pitiful. Destroy them. Keep them from entering." He smiled and pressed a button on his desk. "You hear that, Joe? Your children have fallen strait into my trap." Trinity didn't falter as Joe let out a yell. It was still echoing after the comlink was shut off. Trinity's eyes fell upon the portrait of a woman. She was surprised, and had been watering a garden. Her eyes had spent countless minutes trying to figure the woman out, but did nothing. Yamagatchi spoke. "You destroyed the robots?"

"One, sir." She turned as Yamagatchi stood up, angry. He got in her face, spitting. 

"You DARE destroy only ONE? May I even dare ask which? The bouncy cat, right?"

"Yes, sir." Trinity's eyes were unmoving.

"Damn you!" Yamagatchi said, slapping her cheek. A red mark was left and she refrained from rubbing the mark to ease the pain. "They'll get farther! We'll lose more people!"

"That was the purpose, right?" She asked coldly.

"Yes. It was." He sighed, sitting in the chair. Trinity started putting up her hair. Yamagatchi gave an unseen grin.__

Lui entered the building with Forte behind her. The robots and the humans were in different sets, but few humans were left. The robots mainly hung together, but Forte insisted keeping "ego-woman" company, giving her crud every inch of the way.

"What makes you so sure you can defeat Yamagatchi?" Forte asked, as the two entered a room. A marksman stepped up. Lui lifted up a gun.

"I have my reasons," She shouted before jumping up into the air. The marksman fired, but missed her. Trinity waited from above, holding a self-destruct button.

Forte grinned as he pelted the marksman with shots. Lui continued her firing. The Marksman took the hits, then fired back at Lui. Forte's eyes went wide as not only the bullets, but the shrapnel from the explosion of the body went at her.

As the smoke cleared, Trinity was gone. Lui lay on her side, her bureau badly burned. Forte kneeled down beside her. 

"Damn you humans, always dying," he uttered.

"Forte… listen," She said quietly. "Yamagatchi…" she gasped. "He's a robot."

Forte blinked. "No he's not. He's never given any hint-"

"My mother, Forte," she rasped, "wanted to make a robot with free will. To replace my father. Of course, Yamagatchi went bad. He killed mother in a fit of rage, and disowned me. He tried to redo his actions, he tried to build a better life- when the idea struck him. The idea to destroy the human race." She coughed up blood, but still tried to finish. "He's trying to unleash a virus that makes robots destroy humans. He has known we're here all along. He knew this would happen. He's going to try and kill you all, and Trinity will help. She needs to be shown the truth."

Lui looked up at Forte with big, round eyes. Forte nodded, and sighed. "I'll not try not to kill the bitch," he responded. Lui smiled, then, with the last cough of blood, died.

Forte made a Catholic cross, then stood and left, never looking back. Trinity jumped down, staring at this girl. She took off the bureau to find a picture, a photograph, of a woman with a hose, looking surprised. Angrily, she crumpled the paper into a ball.

"Thanks, Charity," Megaman said, staring blankly at the dead humans sprawled against the wall, their guts on the opposite wall. Zero looked around.

"Nice woman," he said, nodding his head approvingly. Protoman's eyes narrowed. "Nice scarf."

She glared at him. "Just don't go around looking for reasons to die," she told Megaman. 

She then entered the next room. As she did so, an axe promptly chopped her in half.

"You've killed too many men," a voice said, laughing. The robots stood outside, not wanting to come in. Computo growled and placed a force field on the door. The voice laughed louder. "Don't be serious," he said. "I know you can't keep that up forever. Let it go."

Computo did so, still hissing. Smoke entered the room, from unknown and unseen air vents. 

"Let me welcome you to my humble home," Yamagatchi said, his eyes glowing.


	7. Chapter sixFinale

_Chapter six: Showdown_

Megaman's eyes glared, as did Zero's and Protoman's. Yamagatchi laughed, then pulled out a gun. "You people are all too easy. Now, your people are dead, and mine will win. You should have joined my side, Zero. You're purpose is so close to mine."

Zero responded with the finger. 

Yamagatchi's hand squeezed the trigger, but Protoman jumped to grab it. The beam went upwards, and hurt no one. Protoman held the trigger at Yamagatchi.

Computo gave a mew. Yamagatchi laughed. "Your cat knows what's wrong, moron," Yamagatchi said, firing an electro-magnetic blast at Protoman. Protoman fell, his helmet rolling off his head. His expression was shocked, but in a way, relieved. Megaman's heart skipped a beat. 

"You can't do that!" Megaman cried. "You'd have to be a…."

"Robot," Yamagatchi agreed, holding his own face. He snatched it off, revealing a wiry head, with metal in every which direction. "And so I am. I am perfection. I want more perfection." He fired a blast at Computo Cat, who dodged with grace. "And you all are far from perfect."

Megaman growled as he charged up. Zero did the same. Yamagatchi fired another blast, but the Megaman slid underneath it, and Zero dashed out of the way.

Megaman and Zero fired sitimulessly. Yamagatchi cursed, and Zero fired again. Megaman watched helplessly as Yamagatchi's wrist flickered. The walls of the tower came crashing down, and the room was suddenly exposed. A power core lay underneath them, growing and swelling with energy. 

"You see?" Yamagatchi cried. "This is useless! Soon, this will swell and destroy the entire-"

Megaman reached up and grasped Yamagatchi's neck. "I. Do. Not. Care." His eyes were cold. "You've killed, slaughtered, and destroyed carelessly. You say perfection, but you still use the same techniques that Wily pulled off, when it comes down to it. But unlike you, Wily was a lot more humane. I'd rather have him in this position than you."

Yamagatchi's eyes held no fear. Instead, they held triumph. His palm was up, exposed. Megaman threw him into the core. The blast hit Megaman's foot, which stopped working instantly. 

Trinity flew down, along with Forte. Forte looked up at Megaman. "Trinity says he's got another body. And another. And another. She says there's no stopping him. He expected this."

Trinity made no movement. "There's only one thing to do," she said quietly. "You've got to shut him down with a command. I don't know it so well."

"Take Computo out of here," Megaman said. "You won't have to come back." Trinity nodded, and Computo jumped up in her arms as she flew away, only taking one last look. "I'm sorry," she whispered to the night.

Yamagatchi appeared on top of the desk this time. He had not bothered donning human clothes- instead, his body was covered every inch with guns or weapons. Zero charged up again, and Forte let out a yell.

"Command: Override! Yamagatchi ended! Password: Q-U-L-N-T-"

Yamagatchi teleported over to Forte and elbow chopped his back, causing him to drop to the ground. Forte was left speechless.

"Z," Zero responded, finishing the code. Yamagatchi's arms shuddered, as he fought the programming. Zero stood, angrily charging up his Z-buster. Megaman looked from Zero to Yamagatchi, and Yamagatchi smiled.

"I'll still have time to kill you all off," he said quietly. He pointed an arm cannon at Forte. With horror, Zero leaped into the air, and Megaman was paralyzed from the blow. He made some movement, but it wasn't good enough. Zero's blow came two seconds too late. Forte's eyes shown bitter defeat, yet the victorious cry of one who has been beaten several times. They showed this, and he looked from Zero to Megaman, and his head exploded in blood.

Zero was flung back and his the ground. He was covered in blood as he looked down at his hands, his eyes narrowing. Megaman charged up, his arm burning. 

He knew the reason. It was for his desire to help people. It burned when Trinity was hurting Joe, when the Hawk was killing innocent people, when Trinity was attacking Terry. His eyes filled with tears, and in his mind, he saw Marie give her last breath to fight, as she fell. He saw Brandon, as he lay dead with Larry and Terry, the yellow team missing one person. He saw the kids dead, sprawled everywhere. He saw Light dead, with Protoman watching. He saw Lui dead and Charity getting chopped. He resaw Tango die, and watched Forte's memories as Wily whispered to Zero, then lay down. He saw Roll helplessly teleport Protoman away, then watched only to have Protoman killed by Yamagatchi. He saw the children who should have been playing, the parents who were dying, and Joe, dead as well. He remembered Chaos's words. "I'll miss you forever, boy… and so will the world." With all that, in less than a second, his Arm Cannon could no longer take it, and the biggest super-shot he could possibly make hit Yamagatchi. Yamagatchi suddenly had a big hole in his stomach, and looked at Megaman. 

"You…are…perfection…." He whispered, falling over, dead. Zero looked at Megaman, who collapsed with exhaustion. The core powered down, and the moon shown bright as the clock struck midnight. Megaman took off his helmet, and started crying. 

Several miles away, Trinity and Computo watched the core go blank. Trinity gave a smile as she threw her helmet up in celebration. Computo fired an explosive force-field, big enough for everyone to see.

Marie looked up at the sky and smiled. dying. In heaven, so did many others.

"I've failed them," Megaman said, crying. "I failed them all."

Zero blinked, his Z-buster transforming back into a hand. "How do you suppose that, Megaman?" he asked, genuinely surprised. 

"I let them die," Megaman said, crying. "I failed them. I let them all die."

Zero nodded, his Z-buster reappearing once again. As he fired at Megaman, Yamagatchi's fist threw another electo-magnetic wave. Megaman was stuck and he fell three hectometers into the ground, face-first.

Zero was shut off.

_Aftermath_

When Zero reawakened, he was in a warehouse. He couldn't remember who he was, or where he was from, but there was an image that haunted his mind. As he thought about it, it was about a blue robot who had fallen several meters. His eyes were blue, but not surprised, and they were filled with a sort of happiness. They somehow were filled with purpose and kindness, as if the robot had seen a vision, a grand vision. The vision seemed to reflect in his eyes, there were people all around him, and he happily greeted a woman and an old man. Someone who he thought he knew was in the picture, with his helmet off, standing by an old man who also looked happy. Zero blinked and the image faded away.

Suddenly, the door of the warehouse opened, and a bald, green robot with flashy white hipgaurds entered. 


End file.
